Meditations and Prayers
Forgiveness Prayer
God, Goddess, Great Spirit please move me into a state of forgiveness toward anyone or anything that has hurt me, consciously or unconsciously, from the beginning of time to this present moment. I forgive them and I release the energy of the past now.
God, Goddess, Great Spirit please move me into a state of forgiveness toward myself for any hurt that I have caused others, consciously or unconsciously, from the beginning of time to this present moment. I forgive myself and I release the energy of the past now.
God, Goddess, Great Spirit please move me into a state of forgiveness toward myself for any hurt that I have caused myself, consciously or unconsciously, from the beginning of time to this present moment. I forgive myself and I release the energy of the past now.
I invoke the grace and power of forgiveness to transform my mind, body, and heart as I return to a state of divine innocence. And so it is.
Ho'oponopono Prayer
This is a powerful prayer originating in Hawaii, and was traditionally used to 'make right' any conflict among family or tribe in order to have peaceful life. It is said they also gathered if someone was ill, believing that illness was caused by the stress of anger, guilt, or lack of forgiveness.
Silently or out loud, repeat the following mantra, as many times as feels right:
I love you,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you.
We start with love, as it is the true healer, and all there is. We apologize sincerely for whatever we, our people, or our ancestors before us have done to cause pain and strife. We ask forgiveness with absolute certainty that in the energy of love, it is already granted. Thank you confirms that it has been heard, and is complete.
Blessing for a New Child
Dear Precious Child,
Upon your entrance to this world you are surrounded by the pure love of family and friends. You have been tenderly nurtured in your physical creation, and you shall be tenderly nurtured through all of your days to come.
While your physical arrival awaits us all, your spirit knows not birth or death. You are but a sliver of creation broken off from the source of it all. Your true home is beautiful divine love, and you are all of that, in physical form.
Your time on Mother Earth will be an amazing journey. She will provide you with a connection to the one great spirit through her body using fire, water, air, metal, and Earth. She can provide life giving bounty, and she can take it all away in an instant. She reminds us to be thankful every moment.
Your fellow travelers here on Earth will help you learn all the lessons you chose before coming to this world. While we are all children of the divine spirit, Earth is a stage upon which lessons will play out in the most interesting ways. When you and your brothers and sisters see and feel pain and suffering, do not forget that you are being carried on angels wings and that you are always in God's arms, because God is inside of you.
The greatest delusion and suffering my child, is that we are separate. You do not separate from the divine when you choose to play on Earth. You do not separate from your mother when you are born from her womb. You are all of these things. You are your mother, you are the Earth, and you are the divine. And in total perfection, we are all connected in love. You will forget, and then you will remember again.
May your time here be blessed with remembering. And when you forget, may your brothers and sisters sing you back to love, until you return home again.
STARTING A DAILY PRACTICE
A little intimidated by meditation? Here's some Q&A to ease your resistance. (Disclaimer - I am not a yogi, guru, or expert. These are some generally agreed upon basics, intended to make meditation accessible, to get you started)
How should I sit?
While there may be benefits to sitting in full lotus pose, it is not required to achieve the benefits of meditation. It is suggested that you sit upright, with your spine comfortably straight. This can be in a chair, on the couch, on the floor, or on a meditation pillow. It is generally suggested that you not lay down, unless you are practicing yoga nidra. You can meditate upside down, guys. It's just suggested
Part of meditation is noticing your body, and what it feels like to inhabit your body. You may feel aches and pains, or notice that your posture continually slumps, no matter how many times you re-straighten yourself. This is meditation. Just notice. You aren't doing it wrong.
How long should I meditate?
If you already have experience with meditation, we suggest meditating for 20 minutes per day, twice a day. If you are brand new to meditation, sitting for that much time can be difficult. You could start with 5-10 minutes twice a day. It is so very easy to forget to meditate when we are first beginning. Set a repeating alarm on your phone for the approximate times of day you can sit for meditation. Then set a timer for 5, 10, 15, 20 min while you practice. Without a timer, 5 min can feel like forever. Set it and forget about time for a few minutes.
What do I DO?
You don't DO anything! But there are a few things you CAN focus your mind on, to create a more easeful relationship with your mind, body, thoughts, emotions, and spirit. The goal is not to have an empty mind without thought. Many people feel they are 'doing it wrong' because they cannot stop their thoughts, or because meditation feels uncomfortable and they become frustrated. There is no right way to feel, there is no stopping our brain, and meditation surely induces temper tantrums at times. This is all normal, and appropriate. By continuing to sit, and notice, we remind ourselves that we are here for it all. We are showing up for ourselves, no matter what it looks like. This is radical and magical, I promise. Here are a few techniques you can use to help gently focus your mind:
* Listen to and feel your breath, in and out, in and out
* Listen to a guided meditation and follow their voice
* Use a mantra - this is a word or short sentence that you repeat/chant, typically to the rhythm of your breath. You can create a mantra that resonates with you. Some examples are > 'I am here now', 'I breathe in peace, I breathe out love', 'Aummmmmm', 'I love you, I'm sorry, please forgive me, thank you', etc
* Listen to drumming, calming music, nature sounds, or nothing
* There are several things you can do with your eyes while you meditate.
- eyes closed
- eyes softly gazing at some point in the distance
- eyes closed, trained on 3rd eye - slightly inward and up
- eyes 1/10th open - where you might see just a sliver of light
But seriously, what do I do? When the thoughts come pouring in?
There are many people, far more qualified than I, who have dedicated their lives to the study of consciousness. I will list a few contemporary students who have written books that can serve as a far more in depth guide. But the point is, you don't need to know anything before you can start meditating, because there isn't a right way, or a guidebook on how to be with ourselves. These are just a few things I've studied or noticed in my own practice.
* Remember, self love. You guys, we aren't doing this with the intention of hating ourselves more, right? Ok, just making sure.
So a thought pops up. 'If you're going to be digging around in your mind you should probably find a therapist' IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY SEVERAL OTHER THOUGHTS - 'Yeah, but who do you trust? I need a recommendation. Maybe I can ask on facebook. But then Dave, or people at work, or my mom might think I'm crazy or unstable. Mom would definitely call all concerned, like she even gives a shit to know what's going on in my life. She just needs drama to distract her from the fact that she's miserable. I wonder if my insurance covers therapy. Probably not. I wonder if Biden is going to get anywhere with healthcare reform'.................and on, and on. You get the idea. The point is, we have thoughts that wander all over the place, very quickly. At some point, before your timer goes off if you're lucky, you will realize you were believing your thoughts, and following them blindly wherever they took you. Here is where you get a chance to 'do' something.
Stop. Laugh if you want to. I think it's funny. Maybe say, 'Hi thought, bye thought', as you watch it gently move in front of your eyes, across the landscape, and out of your view. Repeat as necessary. What we aren't doing is beating ourselves up for having thoughts, no matter WHAT the nature of them. We will not attach meaning to our thoughts. We will not decide we are lazy, stupid, boring, crazy, arrogant, awesome, genius, so cool, or come to any other conclusions about ourselves based on our thoughts. And, even if it's just for these few minutes we are sitting here, we will not believe to be true any thought that crosses our mind. We will notice that we are having a thought, and we will let it pass. We are not our thoughts or feelings. We are the thing that notices them.
As you practice, and know yourself more, you might begin to experience this thing where 'knowings' bubble up, from a seemingly deeper place than your monkey mind. Things that feel timeless and true and right and holy about yourself, and life, and love, and the universe. We are still going to just notice them, and let them pass. We will not draw the conclusion we have reached enlightenment. We will not affix our identity to these thoughts, or begin to create a story about what they mean. We just watch, as it enters and is allowed to leave our consciousness, without struggle, judgement, attachment, or interference from us, the observer. Refocus on your breath, your mantra, that tree you were staring at, etc. Repeat as many times as necessary.
If you want more insight into the world of understanding yourself more, here are a few great books.
David Singer, The Untethered Soul
Michael Brown, The Presence Process
Matt Kahn, Whatever Arises, Love That
Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance
And a million more.
Do I need to prepare for my daily meditation? Burn candles, light sage, feel devout, connect to the divine, etc?
NO! While ritual is powerful and a great idea, it is absolutely not required in order to have a successful meditation practice. The act of simply sitting each day is the most important part. You might have just cleaned up dog puke, driven three screaming toddlers home from daycare, or turned off your favorite netflix show. No matter your situation or feeling state, it is always the right way to meditate, because you are always the right way of being. Just set your timer, sit down, and breathe.
How am I supposed to feel after meditation?
Go ahead and imagine any and every single feeling or experience that has ever existed. Pick one, or two, or five. That's how you might feel. There is no certain desirable state, because you will feel however your are supposed to feel, without having to do anything to get there. I have felt peace, skin prickling annoyance, deep love, burst into sobs, calm, anxious, hot, cold, happy, sad, etc. It's just the experience I'm having of being me. Over time, it seems as though things are trending towards peace and calm, but I'm willing to show up for whatever happens.
I would love to hear your experiences! We are all so diverse, interesting, and intricately connected. If you have a meditation experience or wisdom to share, message me through this website, email me at shayvetterman@yahoo.com, or find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/shay.vetterman. Let's support each other in our journeys to more fully embody ourselves!